


Who He Loved

by Little_Queen_of_Dreams



Category: Agent Carter (TV), Captain America (Movies), Marvel Cinematic Universe, The Avengers (Marvel Movies)
Genre: 1940's, Agent Carter References, Cartinelli - Freeform, Endgame was awful, F/F, F/M, I mean, Post Endgame (kinda), S.H.I.E.L.D - Freeform, Steve's Character Arc?, actually content ending, what happened
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-05-01
Updated: 2020-05-01
Packaged: 2021-03-02 01:33:51
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,164
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/23936914
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Little_Queen_of_Dreams/pseuds/Little_Queen_of_Dreams
Summary: He was given one chance.One chance to make it back to the 1940s.To see Peggy.One chance to do everything that he’d be wishing for ever since he woke up in a S.H.I.E.L.D facility in 2010.Which is why he was standing outside the door of an unmarried newly Director Peggy Carter’s current New York apartment regretting every life decision he had made up to this point.(Because what’s the point of seeing your kinda-sorta-maybe-girlfriend/ex without a healthy dose of anxiety).In which Steve goes back in time to find Peggy Carter and finds the outcome different than what he was expecting.
Relationships: James "Bucky" Barnes/Steve Rogers, Peggy Carter/Angie Martinelli, Peggy Carter/Steve Rogers, Steggy (past)
Comments: 5
Kudos: 101





	Who He Loved

**Author's Note:**

> I LOVE AGENT CARTER
> 
> (Seriously, if you haven't seen it, it's the greatest show ever)
> 
> (And Angie Martinelli is the greatest love interest ever)
> 
> I was really ticked that Endgame took away all of Peggy's character development and turned her into a sexy-lamp sort of love interest.
> 
> She was more of a macguffin than a woman.
> 
> Please enjoy and let me know what you think with kudos and comments!

He was given one chance.

One chance to make it back to the 1940s.

To see Peggy.

One chance to do everything that he’d be wishing for ever since he woke up in a S.H.I.E.L.D facility in 2010. 

Which is why he was standing outside the door of an unmarried newly Director Peggy Carter’s current New York apartment regretting every life decision he had made up to this point. 

(Because what’s the point of seeing your kinda-sorta-maybe-girlfriend/ex without a healthy dose of anxiety).

Steve held his temples, trying to clear the thoughts away.

She was the love of his life.

This is what was supposed to happen.

Right?

Whatever plan he was supposed to put in motion was cut short by the sound of footsteps coming up the stairs.

Without thinking, he knocked on the thick mahogany door. 

Silence. 

All of his body seemed to freeze up. He’d thought of every possible alternative except for this. 

What if she wasn’t there? 

His mind was telling him that he could (and should) have been more thorough with his plans. This was a stupid idea he never should have tried. Sighing, he turned to go.

That’s when he heard it.

The sound of heels clicking against a hardwood floor, the door knob turning, and. . .

“Steve?”

He turned to face Margret Elizabeth Carter.

Her hair fell across her shoulders in perfect victory curls. A light, lilac shirt opened barely below her neck, paired with sensible black slacks. She was perfect.

And she was staring at him, openmouthed. 

More sounds of footsteps coming up the staircase shook him out of his stupor as they made an uneasy eye contact

“Maybe I should-”

“-get inside.” She pulled him in quickly latching the door behind her. Taking a few deep breaths, she looked up at him, brown eyes observing every last detail. 

“What on earth are you doing here?”

The question came out of her mouth, accusatory and harsher than he was expecting.

“I came back for you.”

“How?” The eyes narrowed.

Gingerly, he pulled the bracelet out of his coat pocket. “Time travel.”

“Crikey O'Reilly,” she stared at it in awe, “but why come here, to me?”

“I promised you a dance, didn’t I?”

The beginnings of a smile graced her lips “Well, then. I must accept.”

~~~

One jazz record and three cups of tea later, both adults had situated themselves on the loveseat of Peggy’s luxurious living room.

“Are you certain you don’t want to learn about your future?”

“Not at all.” A playful light danced across her eyes as she reapplied her red lipstick. “You did let it slip that you visited my beside and ran into an eccentric elderly friend of mine.”

“She force fed me Italian food.”

“Besides,” she shrugged. “I’m not one for spoilers.”

“Really?” He raised his eyebrows. “You think you’re that invincible?”

She smirked, closing the cap with a satisfying  _ click _ . “I’ve already been both shot and impaled, so I’m not sure what more life can throw at me before it concedes.”

“Life is no match for Peggy Carter.”

“Or Steve Rogers.” She met his eyes over her teacup. “Someone who defied death and decided to come back for his dance.”

“I did promise you.”

“What a gentleman.” She set her cup down. “When are you planning on returning?”

He smiled. “That all depends.”

“On what, per say?”

“This.”

“This?” She eyed him quizzically. “What do you mean?”

“I mean, this.” He leaned in for a kiss, a kiss he’d been longing for since he’d woken up, defrosted, in the wrong time. A kiss from the woman he’d pined for, his love. One he’d been waiting for for what felt like his whole life.

A kiss he’d need to keep waiting for.

Peggy shot up quickly, eying him with suspicion. “Steve, what are you doing?”

“I came back for you. Isn’t this what you’d want?” He looked at her, confused.

She pursed her red lips. “A year or so ago, perhaps,” taking his hands into her own as she lowered herself into the adjoining sofa, the brunette looked at him imploringly. “You have a life, in the future. They need you there. I loved you, Steve, but you need to move on from the past and continue living.” Her eyes became glassy with the beginnings of tears. “It’s perfectly fine to let go.”

“I’m sorry,” he leaned back, silently wishing he could disappear into the cushions. “So you’ve met him?” 

“Who?”

“You’re husband, he’s probably just a boyfriend now, but-” He stopped, watching as Peggy began to laugh. “What?”

She took a moment to compose herself. “Steve Rogers, the only husband I may have would be nothing more than a facade.”

“What do you mean?” He went over the words in his mind, trying to decipher them.

“Peg?” A voice from the door drew her attention.

“Coming, Darling,” she stood, giving Steve a hurried look. “Well, Rogers, there’s someone for you to meet.” 

She made her way into the foyer, heels quickly clicking along. It was when she reentered a short while later, arm in arm with a cheerful blonde that Steve understood. 

Peggy Carter didn't want a husband because she already had a wife. 

He watched the woman’s eyes grow as the realization of who he was came over her.

“You're him, you’re Captain America!” She spoke with a heavy New York accent, blue eyes racing back and forth as Peggy explained the situation, purposefully omitting the attempted kiss. 

“Now,” Peggy smiled, taking the woman’s hand into her own. “Steve, this is my partner. Angela Martinelli.”

She rolled her eyes, hand extended. “Everyone calls me Angie, Angela’s only used in playbills and by my family.” 

He shook it, realization dawning. “Martinelli, is that Italian?” 

“Yes, something that is only made clear in my cooking. I love English, but she can’t cook to save her soul.” She grinned.

“You’ll try some if you stay for dinner.” Peggy paused. “You are staying for dinner, aren't you?”

“I don’t think I can.” Steve held the bracelet resolutely. “I don’t want to keep Buck waiting. Besides,” he smiled at Peggy, “I’ve got a life to get back to.”

Her expression matched his. “Shall I walk you to the door?”

“No need.” He stood up. “The two of you seem far too happy to be disturbed.”

He was right. 

Peggy Carter had been the love of his life.

But that life was over now.

Back at the compound, there’d be Sam and Scott.

And Bucky.

Bucky, his idiot. Someone who needed him.

Someone who made his eyes light up the same way Peggy’s did when she saw Angie. Someone who made him smile the way she did when she heard her voice.

He was right.

Peggy Carter had been a love of his life, in the past. More of memory than a real person. Someone who’d shown him how to love. 

And shown him exactly who it was he loved.


End file.
